Does race have a role in the effect of fingerprint on gender?

Abstract

Aim: Fingerprint is one of the personal and reliable physical features. The fingerprint has an important role in forensics, and it is used in the detection of criminals and identity checks. Studies on different races have been conducted, but no interracial comparison has been found in the literature. In this study, we have investigated the effect of race on finger ridge using the same method on 5 different races. Methods: In our study, the right thumb prints of 355 (148 female, 207 male) students aged 17-25 years in our school were taken with an ink pad (stamp) and recorded along with their ages, sexes, and races. Data were analysed by sex and race. Results: In the comparison by sex, the finger ridge counts of male (11.94±2.08) and female (12.76±2.02) participants were found to be statistically significantly different (p<0.001). Participants were classified as Turkish, Arab, Russian, Turkmen, and African. The difference in finger ridge counts between Turkish-Africans was found to be statistically significant in the comparison by races (p<0.05). Conclusion: Comparison of finger ridge counts by sex has been studied on many races, but each study has been conducted with a different method. In our study, we aimed to contribute to the literature by examining how the finger ridge counts of men and women differ in 5 different races by using the same method. Although the data we obtained are compatible with the literature for the Turkish race, there are differences for other races.